Immediate Family

About Nellie Priest

"...On previous leave, which inevitably led to the bars and bright lights of Southampton, Dawson had made the acquaintance of a ship's fireman, John Priest. More importantly, he also came to know Priest's attractive sister, Nellie. The Irishman and the seaside girl began courting.

.Titanic fireman John Priest ...encouraged Joseph Dawson, who was courting his sister, to take a job with the black gang. (Public Record Office, courtesy of Senan Molony, Ireland)

.It was John Priest who poured into Dawson's ears the tales of the sea as they sat in pubs like the Grapes or the Belvedere Arms. And when discharge came, Dawson moved in as a lodger with Priest's mother at 17 Briton Street".